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5 <br /> <br />City Council Members promise City Staff they will: <br />• Respect staff as valued resources and members of our team <br />• Support the maintenance of a positive and constructive workplace environment for City employees <br />where individual members, City staff and the public are free to express their ideas and work to their <br />full potential <br />• Provide direction to the City Manager as a body and not direct the work of individual staff <br />• Encourage staff to focus on the big picture in reports <br />• When possible, notify the City Manager in advance of a Council Meeting of questions or requests to <br />pull agenda items from the consent agenda so the appropriate staff can compile the information <br />needed <br />• Agree that information they ask of the City Manager will be shared equally with all Council Members <br />• Copy the City Manager on all communications with staff, including questions <br /> <br />Working with Boards/Commissions <br />As set forth in the Edina City Code Chapter 2 Article III, Edina’s Boards and Commissions are established by the <br />City Council and serve as advisory to the council. Specific Board and Commission roles are: <br />• Investigate matters within the scope of the Commission or as specifically directed by the council <br />• Advise the Council by communicating the viewpoint or advice of the Commission <br />• At the direction of the Council, hold hearings, receive evidence, conduct investigations, and, based on <br />such hearings, evidence and investigations, make decisions and recommendations to the council <br /> <br />City Council Members promise Boards and Commissions they will: <br />• View Boards and Commissions as vitally important resources to support our decision-making <br />• Communicate effectively with Boards and Commissions to ensure they have the tools to do their work <br />• Give clear direction as a body and take adequate time to review the result of their deliberations <br />• Because of the value of the independent advice of boards, commissions, and task forces to the public <br />decision-making process, members of Council shall refrain from using their position to influence the <br />deliberations or outcomes of board, commission, and task force proceedings <br />• The expectation is that Council Members will not typically attend Board, Commission, Committee, <br />Working Group or Task Force meetings. However, under special circumstances, if we attend a meeting: <br />o We will do so only as an observer and prior to attending we will notify the appropriate staff <br />liaison <br />o Strive for good communication by reporting out to other Council Members <br /> <br />Working with The Community <br /> <br />Residents: City staff is the first call for help for residents. We will refer residents who have concerns to the City <br />Manager. If a resident has contacted the City Manager but is still not satisfied, we will discuss with the City <br />Manager. We acknowledge if a resident receives conflicting information from different City Council Members <br />or staff that is difficult for the resident and could increase liability for the City. <br /> <br />Businesses or other interests: The purpose of a City Council meeting is to discuss information needed to <br />decide, review that information, and decide. It is not feasible to conduct all business in a public meeting. <br />Particularly around development, business interests might ask a member to meet outside of the City Council <br />meeting to facilitate idea generation about proposals. <br /> <br />The City Council’s overarching principles for working the community are: <br />• Never grant any special consideration, treatment, or advantage <br />• Respect sensitivity of personal information <br />54